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Protobalistum
''Protobalistum imperiale'' is an extinct prehistoric tetraodontid bony fish that lived from the Lutetian epoch of Eocene Monte Bolca. In life, it would have resembled a compressed boxfish with five massive spines along the anterior-dorsal side, with the longest spine directly above the forehead, and the shortest spine directly in front of the dorsal fin. It is distinguished from its close, sympatric relative, '' Spinacanthus'', in that its scales are large, and form a sort of armor. (In ''S. cuneiformis'', the individual scales are relatively small, and do not touch each other). ''Protobalistum imperiale'' and ''Spinacanthus'' were a part of the ecosystem of the lagoon that would become Monte Bolca. It has been suggested that, because of their similarity to boxfish, and due to their close relation to modern-day triggerfish, spinacanthids may have preyed on shellfish and small fish. See also * '' Spinacanthus'', its closest relative, lived sympatrically with ''Protobali ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Spinacanthus
''Spinacanthus cuneiformis'' is an extinct prehistoric tetraodontid bony fish that lived from the Lutetian epoch of Eocene Monte Bolca. In life, it would have resembled a somewhat-flattened boxfish with five long spines along the anterior-dorsal side, with the longest spine directly above the forehead, and the shortest spine directly in front of the dorsal fin. It is distinguished from its close, sympatric relative, ''Protobalistum'', in that its individual scales are relatively small, and do not touch each other. (In ''Protobalistum'', the scales are large, and form a sort of armor). ''S. cuneiformis'' and ''Protobalistum'' were a part of the ecosystem of the lagoon that became Monte Bolca. Because of their similarity to boxfish, and due to their close relation to modern-day triggerfish, spinacanthids may have preyed on shellfish and small fish. See also * Prehistoric fish * List of prehistoric bony fish * ''Protobalistum'', its closest relative * '' Eospinus'', anoth ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Spinacanthidae
Spinacanthidae is an extinct prehistoric family of tetraodontid bony fish that lived from the Lutetian epoch of Eocene Monte Bolca. In life, either genus would have resembled a somewhat-flattened boxfish with five massive spines along the anterior-dorsal side, with the longest spine directly above the forehead, and the shortest spine directly in front of the dorsal fin. ''Protobalistum'' is distinguished from its close, sympatric relative, '' Spinacanthus'', in that its scales are large, and form a sort of armor. In ''Spinacanthus'', the individual scales are relatively small, and do not touch each other. ''Protobalistum'' and ''Spinacanthus'' were a part of the ecosystem of the lagoon that became Monte Bolca. Because of their similarity to boxfish, and due to their close relation to modern-day triggerfish, spinacanthids may have preyed on shellfish and small fish. See also * '' Eospinus'', another close relative from the Earliest Eocene of Turkmenistan * ''Eolactoria'' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Monte Bolca
Monte Bolca is a lagerstätte near Verona, Italy that was one of the first fossil sites with high quality preservation known to Europeans, and is still an important source of fossils from the Eocene. Geology Monte Bolca was uplifted from the Tethys Ocean floor during the formation of the Alps, in two stages: one 24 million years ago, and one between 30 and 50 million years ago. The entire formation consists of of limestone, all of which contain fossils, but interspersed in which are the lagerstätte layers that contain the highly preserved specimens. Within these layers, the fish and other specimens are so highly preserved that their organs are often completely intact in fossil form, and even the skin colorWilliams, MattTaphonomy of Monte Bolca University of Bristol can sometimes be determined. The normal rearrangement of the specimens caused by mud-dwelling organisms in the layer before it turned to stone has been avoided—it is assumed that the mud in question was low in ox ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eospinus
''Eospinus daniltshenkoi'' is an extinct tetraodontid bony fish from the Eocene. Its fossils are from the Danata Formation lagerstatten of Ypresian Turkmenistan. ''E. daniltshenkoi'' had four dorsal spines, three of which were on the anterior end of its dorsal side, and the first spine being placed between and below the eyes, almost like a long nose. It also had a pair of spines near the base of its caudal peduncle, and a spine in front of the anal fin. In 2002, and confirmed again in 2003, Santini and Tyler erected the family Bolcabalistidae to contain both ''Eospinus'' and the Monte Bolca '' Bolcabalistes'' as close relatives of both triggerfishes and boxfishes.Tyler, JAMES C., and F. R. A. N. C. E. S. C. O. Santini. "Review and reconstructions of the tetraodontiform fishes from the Eocene of Monte Bolca, Italy, with comments on related Tertiary taxa." Studi e ricerche sui giacimenti terziari di Bolca 9 (2002): 47-119. The similar '' Moclaybalistes'' of Thanetian Denm ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eocene
The Eocene ( ) Epoch is a geological epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from about 56 to 33.9 million years ago (mya). It is the second epoch of the Paleogene Period (geology), Period in the modern Cenozoic Era (geology), Era. The name ''Eocene'' comes from the Ancient Greek (''ēṓs'', "dawn") and (''kainós'', "new") and refers to the "dawn" of modern ('new') fauna that appeared during the epoch. The Eocene spans the time from the end of the Paleocene Epoch to the beginning of the Oligocene Epoch. The start of the Eocene is marked by a brief period in which the concentration of the carbon isotope Carbon-13, 13C in the atmosphere was exceptionally low in comparison with the more common isotope Carbon-12, 12C. The end is set at a major extinction event called the ''Grande Coupure'' (the "Great Break" in continuity) or the Eocene–Oligocene extinction event, which may be related to the impact of one or more large bolides in Popigai impact structure, Siberia and in what is now ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Prehistoric Fish
The evolution of fish began about 530 million years ago during the Cambrian explosion. It was during this time that the early chordates developed the skull and the vertebral column, leading to the first craniates and vertebrates. The first fish lineages belong to the Agnatha, or jawless fish. Early examples include ''Haikouichthys''. During the late Cambrian, eel-like jawless fish called the conodonts, and small mostly armoured fish known as ostracoderms, first appeared. Most jawless fish are now extinct; but the extant lampreys may approximate ancient pre-jawed fish. Lampreys belong to the Cyclostomata, which includes the extant hagfish, and this group may have split early on from other agnathans. The earliest Gnathostomata, jawed vertebrates probably developed during the late Ordovician period. They are first represented in the fossil record from the Silurian by two groups of fish: the armoured fish known as Placodermi, placoderms, which evolved from the ostracoderms; and the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Proaracana
''Proaracana dubia'' is an extinct, prehistoric aracanid boxfish that lived during the Lutetian of middle Eocene Monte Bolca. See also * ''Eolactoria'' * Prehistoric fish The evolution of fish began about 530 million years ago during the Cambrian explosion. It was during this time that the early chordates developed the skull and the vertebral column, leading to the first craniates and vertebrates. The first fis ... * List of prehistoric bony fish References Eocene fish Eocene genus extinctions Aracanidae Fossils of Italy Fossil taxa described in 1961 {{Tetraodontiformes-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eolactoria
''Eolactoria sorbinii'' is an extinct prehistoric boxfish that lived during the Lutetian epoch of the middle Eocene, in Monte Bolca. It had two pairs of long spines, one over each eye, and one pair beneath the anal and caudal fins, arranged very similarly to those possessed by the modern genus ''Lactoria'' (e.g., "cowfish"), but were, in comparison, much longer. ''E. sorbinii'' had a fifth spine between the two eye-spines, arranged and looking very much like a nose. The only known fossil specimen is about 5 cm (2 in) long. See also * ''Proaracana'' another boxfish that lived in Monte Bolca * ''Oligolactoria'' a possible descendant from the Oligocene * Prehistoric fish The evolution of fish began about 530 million years ago during the Cambrian explosion. It was during this time that the early chordates developed the skull and the vertebral column, leading to the first craniates and vertebrates. The first fis ... * List of prehistoric bony fish References ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Turkmenistan
Turkmenistan ( or ; tk, Türkmenistan / Түркменистан, ) is a country located in Central Asia, bordered by Kazakhstan to the northwest, Uzbekistan to the north, east and northeast, Afghanistan to the southeast, Iran to the south and southwest and the Caspian Sea to the west. Ashgabat is the capital and largest city. The population is about 6 million, the lowest of the Central Asian republics, and Turkmenistan is one of the most sparsely populated nations in Asia. Turkmenistan has long served as a thoroughfare for other nations and cultures. Merv is one of the oldest oasis-cities in Central Asia, and was once the biggest city in the world. It was also one of the great cities of the Islamic world and an important stop on the Silk Road. Annexed by the Russian Empire in 1881, Turkmenistan figured prominently in the anti-Bolshevik movement in Central Asia. In 1925, Turkmenistan became a constituent republic of the Soviet Union, the Turkmen Soviet Socialist Repu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sympatry
In biology, two related species or populations are considered sympatric when they exist in the same geographic area and thus frequently encounter one another. An initially interbreeding population that splits into two or more distinct species sharing a common range exemplifies sympatric speciation. Such speciation may be a product of reproductive isolation – which prevents hybrid offspring from being viable or able to reproduce, thereby reducing gene flow – that results in genetic divergence. Sympatric speciation may, but need not, arise through secondary contact, which refers to speciation or divergence in allopatry followed by range expansions leading to an area of sympatry. Sympatric species or taxa in secondary contact may or may not interbreed. Types of populations Four main types of population pairs exist in nature. Sympatric populations (or species) contrast with parapatric populations, which contact one another in adjacent but not shared ranges and do not ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Triggerfish
Triggerfish are about 40 species of often brightly colored fish of the family Balistidae. Often marked by lines and spots, they inhabit tropical and subtropical oceans throughout the world, with the greatest species richness in the Indo-Pacific. Most are found in relatively shallow, coastal habitats, especially at coral reefs, but a few, such as the oceanic triggerfish (''Canthidermis maculata''), are pelagic. While several species from this family are popular in the marine aquarium trade, they are often notoriously ill-tempered. Anatomy and appearance The largest member of the family, the stone triggerfish (''Pseudobalistes naufragium'') reaches , but most species have a maximum length between . Triggerfish have an oval-shaped, highly compressed body. The head is large, terminating in a small but strong-jawed mouth with teeth adapted for crushing shells. The eyes are small, set far back from the mouth, at the top of the head. The anterior dorsal fin is reduced to a set of th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Boxfish
Ostraciidae is a family of squared, bony fish belonging to the order Tetraodontiformes, closely related to the pufferfishes and filefishes. Fish in the family are known variously as boxfishes, cofferfishes, cowfishes and trunkfishes. It contains about 23 extant species in 6 extant genera. Description Members of this family occur in a variety of different colors, and are notable for the hexagonal or "honeycomb" patterns on their skin. They swim in a rowing manner. Their hexagonal plate-like scales are fused together into a solid, triangular or box-like carapace, from which the fins, tail, eyes and mouth protrude. Because of these heavy armoured scales, Ostraciidae are limited to slow movements, but few other fish are able to eat the adults. Ostraciid boxfish of the genus ''Lactophrys'' also secrete poisons from their skin into the surrounding water, further protecting them from predation. Although the adults are in general quite square in shape, young Ostraciidae are more rounded. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
